Wigan Athletic vs Preston North End. Sky Bet Championship.
DW StadiumAttendance12,439.
Watch live on Sky Sports Football from midday on Saturday; kick-off is at 12.30pm
Friday 7 February 2020 16:03, UK
Wigan face Preston in the Sky Bet Championship on Saturday, live on Sky Sports Football.
Wigan could include Antonee Robinson in the side to face local rivals Preston in Saturday's lunchtime Championship fixture. Robinson was pictured in the away end for last weekend's win at Leeds after the late collapse of his proposed £6m move to AC Milan on Deadline Day.
Anthony Pilkington, who has been missing since the Boxing Day draw with Derby, is another player who could return to the fold, having been back in training since Friday. Kieran Dowell remains sidelined after suffering an injury in the draw against Sheffield Wednesday.
Preston boss Alex Neil has said the injuries in his squad have largely cleared ahead of the game. Paul Gallagher and Andrew Hughes were both back in training ahead of last weekend's game with Swansea but neither made the matchday squad.
However, with another week of training under their belt they will now be considered. Billy Bodin and Tom Bayliss remain sidelined.
After a poor first half of the season, Wigan's survival hopes are now improving by the week. Though they lost three on the spin in all competitions after the 3-2 New Year's Day win over Birmingham, they have taken six points from their last two games, beating Sheffield Wednesday and, last weekend, Leeds.
North End remain just outside the play-off places heading into the final 16 games of the season. Alex Neil's men are unbeaten in the league since January 1 and are on a four-match unbeaten streak, too, having drawn 1-1 with Swansea last time out.
Wigan's Paul Cook: "Some of the performances we have had latterly when we have not won was a bit of a worry, because if you play well in games and don't win then of course that is a worry for a manager. The spirit of the dressing room and enthusiasm of the players has never been in doubt.
"It is a great game, a fantastic game. I don't want to sit and give Preston all kinds of superlatives but if Alex maintains what they are doing or goes close then they have had an outstanding season. I think it will be a really competitive game, a feisty game - of course it will, it's a derby match - and both teams will go for it."
Preston's Alex Neil: "I have watched quite a bit of Wigan and they are a lot better than their position suggests. They have lost 27 points from winning positions - which is, I think, the most in the league - and they have some good players and they are a tough team to beat.
"I enjoy these games and, to be fair, they have been very kind to me in all the clubs that I have had. I have had a really good record in terms of derbies and in those games you have to get a balance right in terms of determination and focus and hopefully we can go and do as well as we can, because this is a really important game for both teams."
For much of this season, Wigan's dreadful away record looked as though it would be their undoing in their fight to retain their Championship status for another year. Prior to the 3-2 victory over Birmingham on New Year's Day, the Latics had won just two games on the road in one-and-a-half seasons - 69 games.
Since the beginning of December, however, they have matched that total and have lifted themselves off the bottom of the table in the process. Paul Cook may have lost an important player in Josh Windass to Sheffield Wednesday last month, but their remains a confidence that belies their league position, which no doubt increases hope of avoiding relegation.
Wigan are unbeaten in five home games against Preston in all competitions (W3 D2) since a 1-0 defeat in April 2000.
Preston North End haven't completed a league double over Wigan Athletic since the 1992-93 season.
A win against Preston would see Wigan win three league games on the bounce for the first time since a run of four ending in March 2018 in League One.
Preston are unbeaten in their last four away league games since a run of three defeats in November/December.
Wigan's top scorer this season is centre-back Cheyenne Dunkley (5), who has not scored in the Championship since the end of October against Bristol City.
Scott Sinclair netted last time out for Preston against Swansea, scoring his first league goal in English football since August 2015 for Aston Villa. He last scored in consecutive league games in England in February 2011 for Swansea.
What a win for Wigan at Leeds! I must admit I did not see that coming, but it will have given them a huge boost for their survival hopes. It also means they have won back-to-back games for the first time this season.
Preston are back on the cusp of the play-offs and, with so many of the sides around them playing each other this weekend, will see this as a real opportunity. But I think this will be a draw.
David Prutton predicts: 1-1 (5/1 with Sky Bet)
